But Hutchinson didn't stop with Reed. He went on to introduce a
slate of statewide candidates for three other top jobs and said
they'd run as a cohesive unit - sharing a campaign manager, office
space and a decorated minivan as much as campaign finance law
allows.

IP gubernatorial candidate Peter HutchinsonMPR Photo/Tim Pugmire

"We need a team, not a ticket," Hutchinson said.

John James, a private-practice attorney who served as
commissioner of the Revenue Department under DFL Gov. Rudy Perpich,
is running for attorney general. Lucy Gerold, a deputy police chief
in Minneapolis, is running for state auditor. And Joel Spoonheim, a
city official in Brooklyn Park, is running for secretary of state.

Still, voters can pick and choose their way down the ballot.
Only Hutchinson and Reed will be officially packaged before voters.

In selecting Reed, Hutchinson maintains an outside-government
feel to his campaign against veteran officeholders - Republican
Gov. Tim Pawlenty and Attorney General Mike Hatch, who was endorsed
last week by state Democrats.

Neither Hutchinson, a public policy consultant, nor Reed has
appeared on a fall ballot before.

Reed, of Stillwater, is hardly a familiar face in Minnesota
politics, but she is recognized in health and higher education
circles.

Reed is the former medical director for Health Partners, a large
Minnesota-based HMO.

She served eight years on the University of Minnesota's Board of
Regents, including a two-year stint the governing board's leader.
Regents are elected by the Minnesota Legislature.

Hutchinson said he was looking for someone from the medical
community who could hit the ground running in changing the state's
health care delivery system. He also looked for a person that
voters "actually believe would be a great governor."

Reed said the five-candidate slate is filled with people who
"know how to bring people together, know what the issues are and
know how to get the issues addressed."

The Independence Party is meeting June 24 to endorse candidates,
with Hutchinson the favorite to get the nod for governor over Pam
Ellison.

The party has played a prominent role in the last two
gubernatorial elections. In 2002, Tim Penny grabbed 16 percent of
the vote. In 1998 - when the IP was known as the Reform Party in
Minnesota - Jesse Ventura carried its banner in his upset win.

Hutchinson served as finance commissioner under Perpich, but he
insists he was a politically independent voice in the cabinet.

On Thursday, Hutchinson, James and Spoonheim acknowledged past
activity in the DFL Party. But they - and Reed and Gerold - said
they have long considered themselves independents.

Reed's campaign for votes, however, might have to start within
her own household. Her husband, Dr. James Hart, is a DFL donor and
he actively promoted Lourey at a campaign event in February.

"It's good to have two horses in the race. It doubles my
chances," Hart joked, adding that he'll pull back from working on
behalf of Lourey. "If she did win the primary, I would have to
spend some time meditating and decide where I am. I'm very
supportive of my wife."